State law enforcement officers urge life jacket use after 2 weekend water deaths in Utah

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

State law enforcement urged life jacket use after two water deaths in Utah.
Sgt. Trent Currie of the Utah Department of Natural Resources Division of Law Enforcement emphasized life jackets' importance, likening them to car seat belts.
Currie said possibly upward of 80% of people do not wear their life vests on any given day at Causey Reservoir.

OGDEN — As investigators looked further Sunday into the death of a cliff jumper at Causey Reservoir, state law enforcement officers urged people to wear their life jackets at Causey and on other bodies of water around Utah.

According to Sgt. Trent Currie of the Utah Department of Natural Resources Division of Law Enforcement, the man who died was not wearing a life jacket.

"Unfortunately, he did not resurface," Currie said during an interview with KSL-TV. "It's a very tragic incident. Our condolences go out to the family. It's very sad."

Currie said a DNR Remotely Operated Vehicle team helped recover the man's body Saturday night from the chilly depths of the reservoir.

With that death and another death at Yuba State Park Reservoir Saturday, law enforcement officers were reminding people about life jackets.

"It's very important to wear your life jackets," Currie said. "Life jackets are required here (at Causey Reservoir) for every body. You have to wear them whether you are swimming, on a kayak or on a paddleboard."

Under Utah law, each vessel — even a paddleboard or kayak — is required to have at least one U.S. Coast Guard-approved wearable or inflatable life jacket for each person on board.

Though the rules at Causey Reservoir require all adults and children to wear life jackets out on the water, Currie acknowledged that compliance has been a challenge, with possibly upward of 80% of people not wearing their life vests on any given day.

Sgt. Trent Currie of the Utah Department of Natural Resources Division of Law Enforcement talks about water safety at Causey Reservoir on Sunday. As investigators looked further into the death of a cliff jumper at Causey, state law enforcement officers urged people to wear their life jackets on bodies of water around Utah. (Photo: Greg Anderson, KSL-TV)

He said people could potentially be cited for not wearing life jackets or having them present in other parts of the state.

"It's almost like wearing your seat belt in a car out on the highways," Currie said. "We would definitely recommend and suggest that you wear those life jackets."

Kyler Klomp, who occasionally visits Causey with his family, was wearing a life jacket to paddle board on Sunday, but said he had heard why some people choose not to wear them when they go cliff jumping.

"I know some people don't want to wear their life jackets for that because it kind of hurts when it comes up under the water," Klomp said. "It's still important to wear it no matter what."

He echoed law enforcement's encouragement of people to wear life jackets for their safety.

"Obviously, there is risk when you're dealing with the water," Klomp said. "Don't do anything too crazy, you know."

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Andrew Adams

Andrew Adams reports for KSL 5 News at 4 p.m., 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. Andrew’s news credits include breaking and covering national stories. He has followed Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney to primary states Iowa in 2008 and New Hampshire in 2012 and covered the Romney campaign on election night in Boston in 2012. He has covered the Susan Cox Powell case extensively since her disappearance in 2009. Andrew’s February 2011 investigative work on four Walmart workers fired after stopping an armed shoplifter was featured on CNN and other national outlets. He covered the Crandall Canyon Mine Disaster, the legal proceedings of polygamist leader Warren Jeffs, the federal conviction and sentencing of Elizabeth Smart kidnapper Brian David Mitchell, and the movements of BYU and the University of Utah through conference realignment. Andrew is also proud of a cameo in 2011 on Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report. Andrew’s awards include regional Edward R. Murrow wins in radio for writing, investigative reporting and sports reporting. He was also part of the “Utah’s Morning News” radio broadcast that won a 2011 national Murrow for best newscast.